Tranquil Bedlam
by submarinesmith
Summary: Would you rather live a perfect life or a real one?
1. Tuning Instruments

**Part 0. (Prologue)**

**Chapter 1, Tuning Instruments**

The sun rose over the suburban houses in its customary fashion. A pleasing beam of light shone through Jade Harley's window, tinting her bedroom walls in a salmon color. Her eyes unsealed slowly, absorbing the morning sun. Groaning, she pulled up her duvet, attempting to fall asleep again. After a couple of hours sleep she was interrupted again, this time by a voice calling her. Shuffling around the bedside table for her glasses, with one hand; she dried a filament of drool off her chin with the other. It was Sunday, the shrill motherly voice had announced. Jade knew very well what her mother was implying; they should prepare for mass.

Jade was born in Tranquility Lane in 2071. Her parents had moved to the suburbs from Washington D.C. when Jade's mother became pregnant, and had never left since. Jade's room was modest, filled with cherished toys from her fleeting childhood. She had kept her toys in her room because she was believed it would preserve the Zen state of mind she had as a child. At the same time, this effectively cloaked her tomboy interests, such as firearms and nuclear physics. She couldn't go around acting like a boy, what would people think? After having put her clothes on, she gazed at the floor, walking towards her mirror; she fondly regarded her felt octopi tangling together. Looking up at the mirror, she smiled, correcting her hair a bit.

Jade had long, unruly charcoal hair, and prominent buck teeth; she wore her Sunday clothes which consisted of an elegant emerald spring dress and scarlet patent shoes. She spun around, causing the dress to meander through the air.

Walking to the door, her red shoes clacked awkwardly on the wooden floor. Jade looked into her room from the entrance, yearning for the BB gun she had hidden in the wardrobe. The voice called again, persistently; she closed the door abruptly and hurried down to the kitchen, clacking away. Entering the kitchen she was engulfed by the sound of a radio emitting an upbeat jazzy tune, and a mouthwatering scent of eggs and bacon. Jade's mother was making breakfast while she hummed along to the tune coming from the spheric robot that floated around in the living room. Mister Harley stood by the kitchen table, fastening a pair of suspenders to his pants, then proceeded to sit down. Jade sat in front of her father, looking back and forth between her appetizing plate, and her father.

He had been handed the newspaper by the trusted family dog, Becquerel. Mister Harley sat with his iconic pipe impaled between his thin lips while Becquerel rested its ashen head on his lap.

Jade's parents, she thought, were born to be parents; they did all the things parents should do, and more with joy. Even their personality perfectly reflected what one would expect from a parent. Her father went to work from nine to six, and came home at night tired but satisfied. Jade had never understood what his work was, but she knew he worked in an office out of town. He seemed to like fatherly stuff like listening to sport events on the radio and napping in his recliner. When it was summer he'd sit and read in the backyard, wearing a silly hat mother had forced him to wear, to protect him from the sun.

Jade's mother was a housewife and enjoyed baking and socializing with the select few people living in Tranquility Lane, she left all the cleaning et cetera to the household robot Mister Handy. Missus Harley also had a knack for art and spent a lot of her spare time painting still life. She had succeeded in filling their walls with paintings of mountainside cabins, sunlit forests, and peaceful meadows.

The church was located a bit outside the neighborhood and could only be reached with a car. Come to think of it, she had only ever left Tranquility Lane to go to church on Sundays, since she was homeschooled. After a specific amount of time the car stopped in front of the familiar church. Inside the church was the usual congregation. Except for a fashionably clothed gentleman who was about Jade's age, he wore a pair of shades which increased the mystery about him. A skeletal pastor standing on his holy pedestal began preaching, with a majestic sort of tone. Jades eyes were still fixated on the young man who looked a tad bored, sitting a few rows in front of her. She could only see him when the people in front of her reclined in a certain fashion that only happened every now and then. After the mass had ended Jade hadn't absorbed a single thing that the pastor had said, instead she sat and speculated about the boy; she even managed to squeeze in a short nap. She had never seen anybody new; there had always been the same handful of people in her lives, the mysterious boy's presence was enticing in itself. After the mass had ended, the congregation had gathered in front of the white, wooden church. The young man stood in the utmost periphery of the group, when Jade reached him.

She introduced herself; in return he told her his name was Dave Strider and that he had just moved into town. She figured he had moved into the abandoned house right across her own. That house had been empty for as long as she could remember, she had never evem noticed a "for sale" sign. This whole thing struck her as odd.

"Where are you from anyway?" Jade inquired.

He furrowed his brows in response, making them disappear behind his shades "I'm from the city; I moved here to get some fresh air." He paused for a bit, releasing the tension in his face "Mind if I hitch a ride with y'all?" He asked, fidgeting slightly with his tie. He was wearing a conspicuous red tweed jacket and matching pants. Jade had deemed his attire looked like that of an alluring stranger; she had, of course refrained from saying this aloud. Hesitating slightly, lost in her own thoughts for a second, she answered "I'll ask daddy if you can come with. You know how it is with dads." She smirked slightly as she rotated, family bound. Mister Harley accepted the request; jokingly he added that he didn't want to see any kissing in his car. The trip was unsurprisingly awkward for all parties.

Arrived at Tranquility, Dave strolled to the playground in the middle of the circular neighborhood, while Jade's parents went into their own house. Jade followed him and they both sat down at the swings. This whole thing seemed weirdly organic to Jade, she had never seen the boy before in her life but somehow there was a mutual understanding between them.

Breaking the silence, Dave spoke. "Don't you get bored, being here all day?" He stared straight forward, swaying back and forth. "What?" she replied, confused at his strangely bold statement. "Don't get me wrong. It's nice and calm." He turned his head slightly towards her, with a bland expression. Evading his gaze, she looked down at the grass under her feet. "And it's dangerous outside." She added. The immaculately dressed youngster straightened his legs, increasing his momentum. "You have no idea." He spoke in a distant tone. "I could show you." He added. She laughed in response "You sound like a darn radio drama!" He didn't react to the comment, but kept swinging.

That night Jade hardly got any sleep. She lay and pondered upon what Dave had told her. Maybe she did need an adventure, after 17 years of suburbia.


	2. Raise of the Conductor's Baton

**Chapter 2, Raise of the Conductor's Baton**

The sun rose over the suburban houses in its customary fashion. A pleasing beam of light shone through Jade Harley's window, tinting her bedroom walls in a salmon color. Her eyes unsealed slowly, absorbing the morning sun. She proceeded to pull her duvet over her head, leaving her legs uncovered, feeling the cold air against her legs, she stretched them until her whole body was purring slightly. After a moment of hesitation, Jade stood up decisively to look out the window, eyeing her backyard. Her crops and flowers were looking quite healthy. Since it had rained most of the night she didn't even have to water them.

Slipping into more casual clothing, she exited her room. The kitchen and living room were both empty; the summer holidays had started for a few weeks, so her parents were having their rightful beauty sleep. The sun had only just dawned on the greyish sky, saturating the clouds with crimson and cyan dye. Silently opening the front door, she stepped out on the lawn. The air was cold and moist. Jade walked directly to the phantom playground; the whole block was sleeping, it seemed. Jade enjoyed these moments of reclusion; she was rarely ever able to be alone in such a small community. After having brushed off a layer of droplets of rain and dew, which burst into a puddle as soon as she touched them, off the seat of the swing, she sat down. While rocking back and forth she looked at her hands. She was wearing a plethora of colored rings, which she used to keep track of things she had to remember. She had read about this particular technique for memorizing important tasks and such in a magazine she had long forgot the name of. She had added a red one in honor of Dave, as a reminder to figure out his motives or whatnot.

After no less than a minute, Dave Strider arrived in the same clothes as the earlier day. Jade greeted the boy, telling him that she had no need for some Tarzan character taking her on jungle adventures or whatnot. He scowled slightly in return, "Don't worry. No jungle adventures will take place." He answered. "I mean," She looked at him through her slightly fogged glasses and explained, "you can't just come around one fine day and tell me I've been living the 'wrong' way." Dave sat down on the swing next to Jade's and replied "I'm not implying that you're doing it wrong. I kind of envy your blissful unawareness, to be honest."

She stopped the swing, planting her feet on the ground. "Hey! I am not stupid, and for the record I am growing tired of your disposition." He stopped as well, standing up. "Well, I'm tired of beating around the bush. I don't know how to break it to you, but this creepy ass suburb extravaganza is not actually real." He paused for a bit, looking for the right words. "Basically, you're sitting in a desolate vault watching your fake sitcom life on a television screen."

His pants were completely wet from the swing seat, but he didn't seem to care; he added to his previous statement. "Hell, you're lucky I found you. Your real body, which for the record is being prodded weird liquid cuisine down its throat through a feeding tube. However, your reserve of gross nutrition stew is running out as we speak."

"So what you're saying is I'm going to die of starvation?" She inquired.

"Well, it is avoidable." He explained "you just have to renounce your fake fairy tale life."

She quipped in response "You mean I have to die to keep living?"

"No," he frowned as he continued "you just have to pull the cork out of your fantasy bath tub world, put some clothes on and start living like a normal human being."

"That's a horrible metaphor."

"Yeah whatever, that's not the point."

Birds were twittering loudly and the sun had lit the scenery up like in one of missus Harley's paintings.

"How am I supposed to believe this?" She asked, looking straight at the boy's face, furrowing her brows.

"This may seem like a pure 18 karat lie to you. But I can prove it."

He walked toward the abandoned house, and she followed right behind him kicking the dew off the overgrown grass in the walkway. "I'm only following you so I can ridicule you afterwards." She snorted. Jade had been in this house often, when she wanted some alone time. There was a huge mess in there, toppled furniture and cinderblocks covered the dusty floor. On the wall there was a hunting target thoroughly punctured by bullet holes. Suddenly Dave began whistling, Jade looked at him with a mystified expression. She knew the tune well, she had often heard Mister Handy play it. A, she smiled as she recognised the name of the shrill notes. He looked around as if he expected something then whistled the same tune again. This time the ground started trembling. Jade stepped a bit away from Dave as dust began drizzling from the ceiling. He whistled again for emphasis as a huge terminal ejaculated from the wall. Dave turned to the girl, nodded and uttered a satisfied 'hm'.

"If I click this button the simulation will end immediately." He looked back at her with a bland, but questioning expression.

"Do it."


	3. A Solitary Note Flows in the Silence

**Part 1.**

**Author's note: I switched the narrator to first person, in part 1. as opposed to the 3. person narrator in the prologue. I did this to reflect the difference between the idea of the stories, as to say that she didn't have control of her life before now. It was just some narrator telling it for her. I hope this causes a minimal amount of confusion.**

**1. A Solitary Note Flows in the Silence**

My eyes opened slowly as if it was the first time; an unfamiliar light shone down on me. I was hopelessly trying to focus at a series of unidentifiable alphanumeric characters cascaded in front of my eyes. I closed my eyes again; I may have slept for a bit, I'm not sure. A slight ring woke me up; in front of my eyes stood the now static text.

**Jade: Enter**

The letters shone brightly down on me from some sort of terminal screen. I moved my tongue around a bit; my mouth was dry. There was some sort of plastic tube resting on my teeth and running down my throat. I gasped suddenly at the realization and tried to move my head, only to reach the conclusion that my head was tied to the chair I was in. Coughing and wheezing, I tried lifting my hands in desperation but they only trembled slightly. I could feel tears flow down my cheeks; the complete helplessness was entirely alien to me. Taking the deepest breath possible, with a tube in my mouth, I tried to move my fingers and toes. After what felt like eternities of this exercise I was able to move, but only slightly. Moving my feet around in the claustrophobic space in my enclosed capsule; I collided with some sort of object, which I decided was a book. I closed my eyes again. _I guess a short nap won't hurt, it looks like I'm going to be here a while anyway._

I was awakened by a whirring of gears then a loud 'fwoop'.

A hoarse voice greeted me.

"Excuse me while I impale you with this majestic pin."

I saw only a blurry silhouette.

"Because, you see, I'll have to drug you with this extremely addictive substance of unknown origin. No big deal."

I felt a slight prick in my arm.

"This injection will make you become Captain America or whatever, so don't worry."

The cold liquid flowed through my veins like a frigid river. I almost immediately felt an invigorating shock through my body. I was able to move again, but I still couldn't see right without my glasses. The first thing I could get myself to do was to forcefully tug the tube out of my esophagus.

I gasped then spoke.

"Dave? I need my glasses! I can't see anything."

"What gave me away?" He answered and then quickly added "Oh yeah. Let's find you some glasses. "

I heard his nimble footsteps moving away from me. I removed the strap on my front, and then shuffled around a bit. I grabbed the book next to my toes; it was green. I pulled it up in front of my eyes, trying to make out the words on the cover.

**A study in Wasteland Survival**

That's what it looked like at least, I opened it up. The words inside were too small so I just shut it, sighing slightly. I felt weirdly vigorous, restless even; looking down at my hands I saw they were trembling, so were my legs. I stepped carefully off the ledge of the capsule. The room, it seemed, was circular. A light flickered from the middle. It had an almost bluish glow at times; now and then it would seem electric yellow, but always with a cold radiance. I must have stood in awe for a few minutes at least, lost in my thoughts.

The air was heavy and cold, so I decided to get back into the capsule and wait. I might have run around the capsule a few times first, but that is none of your concern.

After a while I heard a series of fast paced footsteps, which ended in the familiar silhouette that was my comrade.

"Hey. I have searched far and wide and prepare your lid 'cause flipping of said lid entails. I've found 2 pairs of pristine goddamn condition eyeglasses in the office. Who would even keep 2 pairs?"

I've only noticed now that he has a vague hint of a southern accent, but looking back it was quite obvious.

"Oh my," I laughed, maybe a tad too loud. "Thank you very much Mr. Cool Cat. It is a pleasure, being able see again."

He was wearing the exact same attire as in Tranquility Lane, his red plaid tweed, the white and red striped shirt with the black tie, and the shades of course. Heck, even the embroidered record on his tweed pocket.

"What now?" I asked.

"I suggest we get to the nearest town or something, unless you want to stay here. I don't really care."

The new glasses were round and oversized, they fit quite well to my sight, I reckoned.

"We can leave in just a minute, just got to fix some things first."

I crawled back into the capsule to fetch the book again,

On the first page was written a dedication.

Dear Jade,

I am sorry it had to be this way; I only wanted what was best for you.

When you were just a tiny child two big group of meanies were controlling the Capital 's just say I was not best friends with either of these groups, and at one point I had a very difficult choice to make, when I was supplied with a power one could hardly imagine. I had to decide which one of the meanies I should wipe off this earth. Being the just and heroic adventurer I was, I decided to let them both be, at the cost of my own life. However, I left a single daughter in this world, that's you. Since I was not able to take care of you I devised a way to keep you safe.

I used some old technology, I had stumbled upon during one of my adventures, to create the perfect world for you. I also made sure that the world could only be shut down from the inside, securing you from raiders etc.

I just want to say, I am so, so, so proud of you and I love you very much.

Sincerely,

Jacob English, Your father.

"We can go now, Dave, let's go to a place where I can buy some stuff." I felt my voice cracking as I yawped from inside the capsule. I trembled slightly while I stuffed the book into one of the bigger pockets in my shrunken suit. I definitely needed some more comfortable clothes; maybe even a rifle, if I was lucky.

"Well, yeah. But I came down here for a reason, there ought to be a crate of functional pipboys down here, we have to get those first. That way we can actually pay for your shopping sprees." He spoke monotonously, looking at his fingernails. Biting a bit off of one of them, he continued. "So, what are we waiting for?"

The crate with the pipboys was in a storage room parallel to the main room where 8 capsules like my own stood in a circle around a pillar. I found the crate and we opened it together, inside were at least 25 of these vambrace-like instruments. I carefully removed one; it was surprisingly light, seeing it was made of metal. It had a sleek, welcoming surface with 3 big reassuring buttons under a rectangular display. I looked at Dave and asked "Do you mind if I keep one of these, they seem quite useful."

He lifted an eyebrow and scratched his chin. "Well, in that case I'll keep one as well. I reckon 23 pipboys can still rake in some sick loot."

I smiled carelessly while I fastened the pipboy to my wrist; I clicked a random button and the display lit up with an amber glow. I quickly got the hang of it and found the chat client "pesterBoy". I need a pipHandle. I guess that's some kind of pseudonym. Hmm, I got it, I'll call me gardenGnostic.

We managed to drag the crate out of the intricate maze of a tunnels without much trouble. At the end of a long tunnel we stood in front of a worn door. Bright, white light shone through cracks, causing our shadows to stretch out far behind us.

I'd have never thought it was daytime.


	4. Woodwinds Warble Along

**4. Woodwinds warble along.**

I cast a sidelong glance at the boy beside me, I could hear him breathe. Only a slight buzzing from our pipboys and our syncopated breathing was audible in the sharply lit tunnel.

I stepped hesitantly forward and pushed the door open. The sun shone aggressively down on the wastes. I walked carefully through the opening, looking around. Yellow grass stood withered in scarce amassments. The wasteland stretched wide across the horizon. A few ruins were visible in the distance; otherwise the panorama was completely identical anywhere I looked.

"What happened?" I whispered slightly. "Where is everybody?"

"What did you expect, a huge hub of civilization flying among the silvery skyscrapers. Or some shit like that?" Dave answered, slightly annoyed.

He cleared his throat. "Whatever. Let's just get to closest resemblance to a town." He began leading the way, carrying the box on his own. I followed meekly, looking around, analyzing the plants that were still barely alive. We walked for a long time, swapping the box between us a couple of times. Before we knew it the sun had begun to sink down; it had almost hit the horizon when Dave stopped so abruptly I nearly crashed into him. He carefully planted the box on the ground, stepped back, and pointed at something, then whispered "Radroaches."

A group of enormous, brown, slimy cockroaches skittered around the path buzzing loudly.

I shivered and backed up quickly, while Dave pulled a handgun out of his blazer. The cockroaches continued buzzing, I shut my eyes closed, and crouched. Three loud gunshots ripped through the air like thunder, then echoed softly afterwards. The cockroaches began buzzing and screeching and clicking even louder than before. I could feel them come closer.

Three more shots sounded, then a click.

"Run!" Dave growled, sprinting away from the box of pipboys. I followed immediately afterwards with long unaccustomed steps. Looking back I was met with a frightening sight. There were at least 30 of these gargantuan cockroaches. My heart was pumping rhythmically, quicker, 160 bpm, 180, 200. My head felt lighter and lighter while my legs became progressively heavier. The oxygen flowing quickly through my lungs felt like knives against my throat, sharply cutting small, precise scratches in my body.

My pace descended according to my ascending heartbeat and I fell down. The rush of the injection must have run out.

The ground was so dry that it had an intricate pattern of cracks, the sand looked navy colored in the darkness of the waste. I looked down one of the cracks; the sand seemed damp underneath. I felt pain, but it was distant; I felt fear, but it was distant; I felt tired, but it was all so far away.

I heard only a loud, continuous beep. I saw only cracks stretching into infinity. Then there was nothing.

When I woke up, it was dark. Dave was lying unconscious a few feet away from me; his clothes were torn, his skin was mangled and wounded. "Dave? Are you all right?" I asked, probing the ground around me for my glasses; they turned out to be right beside me. He wasn't answering. "Dave?" I asked again, moving closer to his silhouette. His eyes were not shielded by his shades.

I turned around towards a creaking noise. A carriage was slowly driving down the path. It was pulled by multiple abominable cow creatures. I was not fazed by it; maybe I was too tired, perhaps I had seen too much already.

A young man jumped down from the carriage "Wow. You guys are alive!?" He smiled widely, lit up by his own flashlight. "Gosh, that's a relief; wouldn't want to clear the road after you guys." He snorted, jumping down the carriage. "Lighten up! I was kidding." The stranger awkwardly added, moving in closer and crouched next to the two us.

"I saw the whole thing from afar. He managed to get the roaches to attack him instead of you." He explained.

"I don't want him to protect me." I grunted.

"Well, that's understandable; he's not very good at it." The stranger glanced towards me with the slightest smirk.

"Will you shut up!?" It burst out of me, louder than I had anticipated, "Can't you see he's hurt? He needs help!"

John tipped down into a sitting position and gasped slightly. "Oh yes! Right, of course." He looked mildly agitated "By the way, my name is John. John Egbert. Nice to meet you!" Nimbly getting back on his feet, he reached out his hand for a handshake his hand barely squeezed mine, before he darted into the back of his carriage.

I was still sitting down, when I answered quietly to myself. "I'm Jade."

The Capital Wasteland seemed almost peaceful in the night lit only by the stars; the ground was as dark as the sky was illuminated. There I sat alone with the helpless blonde boy. I could only barely see him even though he was right beside me. He looked so restful, yet defenseless breathing slowly without his shades on. I sighed deeply along with him, moving a lock of hair away from his face.

"Hey guys?" It sounded from the carriage. "Do you want to go with me? I'm going towards New Capitol. You just gotta watch out for my buddy in the back. He can be a bit… grumpy."

I was surprised by this person's straightforwardness, even though I didn't know where or what "New Capitol" was, He seemed like he just had good intentions. I looked down at Dave and then quickly accepted the help. John helped me carrying Dave most of the way to the carriage. The inside of the carriage was surprisingly big and cozy. A gaslight was secured to the loft and the seating space was completely filled with blankets and pillows. Just my kind of place: cozy and messy. I stepped outside to admire the carriage in its entirety. It was not just a carriage, it was a caravan. It had two wagons, one for people and one for cargo. No wonder it had 3 rows of cow creatures pulling it!

"Do you like it? It's called a diligence. I found it down south. It may not be the fastest or the most secure kind of travel but with it I can carry loads of cargo and such. I really like it for some reason." John said, noticing I was admiring the carriage.

"Yeah, I get you. It's really impressive." I answered, quietly.

"Uhm," John said after a long pause. "Your friend might need this."

He handed me a syringe with 'Stimpak' written on it. What is it with these people and syringes?

"Well, thank you." I smiled as genuinely as I could, while I climbed into the carriage. I quickly covered myself and Dave as deep as I could, in the amassment of blankets. I figured Dave only needed some rest and he'd be fine tomorrow.

I slowly began to doze away.

I was woken up by a strong light and a two voices loudly discussing. My eyes unsealed slowly revealing a now awake Dave Strider.

I slowly lifted my head to see whom he was speaking to. I was appalled. The person's skin was half-decayed; his nose was missing and his hair was thin and black. I let out a surprised screech, causing them to shut up.

"I told you, you'd wake her!" Dave announce, sighing.

"I woke her up? You were the one who fucking shouted, you numbskull!" He responded.

"Right, you're the pinnacle of self-restraint and serenity. Seriously, I mean, look at you; you're motherfucking Buddha." Dave said. He was wearing his sunglasses again. They had some minor cracks and scratches here and there but it didn't seem to matter.

"Who do you fucking thing you are you self-righteous douchebag. You are in my carriage, you follow my rules." The zombie guy replied.

I didn't catch much more of the conversation as my eyelids became heavy again. I crawled deeper under the blankets and fell asleep shortly after.


End file.
